


Dishonorable Scourge

by mcgarrygirl78



Category: Law & Order: SVU
Genre: Drama, Friendship, Gen, Humor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-22
Updated: 2015-09-22
Packaged: 2018-04-22 21:08:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,491
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4850597
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mcgarrygirl78/pseuds/mcgarrygirl78
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Well aren’t you all smug with your non-clammy face and your medical information.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	Dishonorable Scourge

“I'm good.” He said, faltering a bit as he put on his coat. He dropped it the second time.

“You're not good.” She put her hand on his shoulder. If he would’ve bent over, she would’ve had to pick them both up for sure.

“Really, I'm OK.” He groaned as she helped him into his coat. “This is too much; you're making too much of this, Detective.”

“I don’t think I am.”

“I do. I think…”

It seemed as if all the blood suddenly rushed out of his head. He felt it happening, remembered the feeling from it happening a few times in his life. There was nothing scarier than knowing you were about to pass out and there was nothing you could do. He reached out to grip the side of the desk, somehow missing. And then he was going down.

“Hey, hey…”

He could hear her voice, though it sounded far away. _I got you, hey, let’s get you over to the couch. I'm going to get you some water_. He had to hand it to her. While Detective Olivia Benson looked strong, she had to be pretty good to half drag a man his size all the way across the room and sit him on the couch. Rafael groaned…it seemed as if everything hurt. 

What the hell had he been thinking, dragging himself out of bed for the past two days and down to the DA’s office? A few colleagues mentioned that he didn’t look the best but he waved them off. He hadn’t been sick since high school…he had an immune system better than Superman. The scourge would pass him by as it always did; he was just tired.

“Here you go.” Olivia came back into the room, handing him the small plastic cup. “I mixed cold and hot but sip it slowly.” She put her hand on his forehead, he was clammy. His glands were a bit swollen; his skin paler than usual. “There are 6 SVU cops down with this thing. When will people realize the importance of a flu shot?”

“No lectures.” Rafael mumbled. His mother told him all the time because that’s what mothers do. He ignored her because that’s what sons do. He didn’t get sick. That happened to other people.

“No, no, I'm not going to lecture you.” She shook her head. “Let’s loosen your tie a little bit though; you need some breathing room. As soon as you feel like you can stand on your feet we’ll get you home.”

“I don’t…” he could hardly say anything as he pulled into himself and away from her touch. “Detective…”

Olivia stopped, hands on his tie. She promptly removed them and looked into his eyes.

“Is this alright, Rafael?” she asked. “Is it alright for me to touch you?”

All those years of training and the thought never even crossed her mind. She just assumed, they were friends and it would be OK. Never, ever assume. That was one of the first things she learned in her line of work. Olivia put her hands in her lap.

“I would prefer not.” He whispered, unable to look into her eyes. “I'm sorry.”

“You don’t ever have to apologize to me. Give me your car keys and I’ll go warm up your car while you relax a bit. Is that alright?”

He nodded, digging into the pocket of his wool coat. As soon as she was out of the room, he closed his eyes and let the waves of nausea roll over him. He wasn’t sure if this was the flu thing or having her so close. His heart was beating too fast. 

How did he go from feeling like he was OK to feeling like he was gonna die in 10 minutes? Dishonor on the cow of whomever had placed this scourge upon him. By the time Olivia returned, Rafael had loosened his tie and undone the top button of his shirt. It felt like an oven in there.

“OK, I think we can try to make our way downstairs now.” She said. “I'm gonna have to help you, are you uncomfortable with that?”

 _Very, very uncomfortable. There has got to be another way_. “We should probably get this over with if I don’t want to sleep in the hallway tonight.” He said. “I should get my briefcase.”

“You don’t need your briefcase, Counselor.”

“But my work…”

“Will be here when you return in a few days.” Olivia replied calmly. “You're a walking germ factory at the moment so it’s not a good idea to continue to expose people. The virus usually takes 7 to 10 days to move completely out of your system.”

“Well aren’t you all smug with your non-clammy face and your medical information.” Rafael grumbled.

Olivia laughed. She helped him up from the couch and they began the slow walk from his office to the elevator. He did pretty good walking on his own. In the elevator down to the parking garage the ADA mostly leaned on the wall for support. When he was finally in his car, he slumped into the passenger seat like an exhausted child.

“I don’t like people driving my car.” He said.

“That’s not at all surprising. I'm sorry about that. Where am I taking you?”

“Home.”

“I don’t know where you live, Barba.”

“Oh…right. Um, its 135 Central Park West.”

“Seriously?” Olivia looked at him before checking the rear view mirror to pull out of the space.

“Yes.”

“You live at The Langham?”

“Yes. I'm sick, we can save the interrogation for some other time I'm sure, Detective.”

The Langham was one of the most famous and expensive buildings on the Upper West Side of New York. People like Carly Simon and Diane Sawyer had once called its hallowed halls home. It was where the wealthy lived, no matter how they got their money. Rafael had no intention of telling Olivia tonight about the nearly two years he spent as a kept man while he was in law school. He wasn’t ashamed, he had loved Peter. 

He didn’t even know about the damn condo until Peter died. It was his now, bestowed upon him so he would never have to worry about where to lay his head. All he had to do was sign the non-disclosure form and walk away. It was the easiest and hardest thing Rafael had ever done in his life. 

He'd even lied to his mother about where the condo came from. But it was his, it was where he lived, and so now Olivia Benson could be added to the short list of people who knew. The shorter list of people who knew why might come at a later date. NDF or not, there were a very small list of people who knew.

“Should I stop and get things on the way?” Olivia asked. She had a million questions while also knowing that none of it was her business. The Langham though, it was a big step up from a boyhood in the Bronx. “Do you have things you might need if you were sick?”

“I never get sick.” Rafael replied.

“OK, so the closest convenience store and then home.”

“There's a new CVS on 21st and Broadway.”

“Alright. Buckle up, Counselor.”

***

Olivia didn’t say anything as she did her best to look and not look around his condo at the same time. Rafael Barba was living high on the hog…very high. He was living 24/7 doorman, someone takes your car to the garage, view of half the damn city high on the hog. But she just remained quiet as she put the Gatorade in the refrigerator. It was also worth noting that a trip to the supermarket might be in order. Luckily she had purchased two cans of soup at the drug store. He probably wasn’t going to have much appetite anyway but she would try to feed him.

“Detective, I really appreciate this.” He took off his coat and put it in the foyer closet. “I'm going into my room to die. Sorry I can't walk you out.”

“Rafael?”

The sound of his first name made him pause. She'd never called him by his first name before. He leaned against the wall for support. She better talk fast or she might be picking him up again.

“You need to get out of those clothes and into comfortable pajamas. If you need help doing that please let me know. Also, I need to take your temperature and pump you full of Nyquil so you can actually sleep tonight.” Olivia held up the bottle. “This is the good stuff from behind the pharmacy counter. I had to show ID and everything.”

“Um…”

“You're sick.” Her voice softened. “Please let me help. You can say no but I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“I need help.” He didn’t want to say it but it was true. Right now he felt as if he were dying, how was he supposed to take care of himself? “I’ll go and change. If you hear a loud crash, I've surely hit the floor.”

“I’ll knock in ten minutes. Are you OK to walk?”

He nodded and went down the hall to his bedroom. Only a few minutes were spent wondering if she was going through his condo. It didn’t matter since he couldn’t have stopped her if he wanted to. And Olivia Benson was not that kind of person. She was the person people trusted with their secrets and their lives. She was the thick and thin friend, and it had been quite a long time since he'd had someone like that in his life. 

In a rare display of not giving a damn, Rafael threw his suit, dress shirt and tie over a chair. His socks, tee shirt, and underwear went into the hamper by the bathroom door. He grabbed the first tee shirt and pajama pants in the drawer. Now was not the time to be embarrassed about them being Spiderman. 

His godson bought them last Christmas and Uncle Rafi promised to wear them. Tonight that was going to be a promise he kept. He drew the line at the orange Snuggie his mother insisted on him owning, he didn’t care how chilled he felt. The thick sheets and comforter would have to do in keeping him warm.

“Are you ready?” Olivia knocked on the door.

“Yes.”

She came in with the Nyquil, thermometer, and a half glass of Gatorade. Sitting down beside him on the edge of the bed, Olivia told him to open up. Surprisingly, he did so without protest.

“After I take your temperature, drink the Gatorade. It should give you back some of the electrolytes you’ve lost from the fever.” She said. 

The thermometer beeped and she took it from under his tongue. 101.3 was high but not uncommonly so for the flu. She handed him the glass while removing the plastic from the medicine measuring cup. Just a little extra would surely knock him out cold. It was what he needed.

“I'm embarrassed.” He whispered, taking the cup.

“Because you're sick?”

“Because I rarely ask people for help.”

“If it makes you feel any better,” she said smiling. “I kinda MacArthur’ed the situation. I have a tendency to do that when my friends won't listen.”

“I feel a little better about that.” Rafael smiled too. It was nice that she considered him a friend. He drank the Nyquil, which tasted more like punishment than help. For a moment he fought the urge to gag and then handed the cup back. “I don’t want to ask you to stay.”

“Are you telling me to go?”

“Liv…”

“I want to stay; I want to make sure you’re alright. If I go home I'm not going to be able to sleep because I’ll just be worried. We’ll get to the morning, see if you can eat a little, and then if I need to go I’ll go.”

“What about Brian?” Rafael didn’t want to ask but the truth was that she had a boyfriend. She had a boyfriend and was spending the night with him. If he wasn’t feeling like hell, he'd smirk about it. If he wasn’t feeling like hell she wouldn’t be there.

“He's undercover, and that’s inconsequential. I promise that’s nothing you have to worry about.”

“I owe you.” This time he reached for her, taking her hand and holding it tight in his.

“That couch out there looks more comfortable than my bed.” She smiled. “You don’t owe me anything.”

“It’s excessive.” He rolled his eyes.

“The couch?”

“All of this really.”

“And yet, it’s still very you.”

“A compliment?” Rafael asked.

“A compliment. Now go to sleep. I'm right outside if you need anything but you'll probably pass out in a few minutes. If you wake up in the middle of the night and feel as if you're not sick, don’t believe it; this is a powerful drug. Also, don’t forget I'm here…that could be awkward in the morning.”

Olivia pulled the covers up to his chin as Rafael settled in bed. He was already drifting so she would leave him to it.

“The television, the remotes…” his speech was slightly slurred when he spoke. Slowly he was giving up the pretense that everything was just dandy.

“I’ll find what I need. You go to sleep.”

“Night, Liv.” He turned on his side as she reached over to turn off the lamp.

“Goodnight.” She kissed his cheek without even thinking.

He didn’t say anything so she just got up from the bed and left the room. Back out in the living room, Olivia just looked around. This was a seriously nice condo that she wouldn’t mind spending the night in. Still, it could’ve been a Hell’s Kitchen walkup and she would’ve slept on the couch anyway. A friend in need was a friend in need; it didn’t matter how nice their apartment was.

In the kitchen there was a bottle of Chateau Ste. Michelle Merlot sitting by the wine rack. Olivia poured herself a glass. There was mozzarella cheese in the fridge that was edible so she made herself a small plate. Sitting down on the couch, she kicked off her shoes and breathed a sigh. Then she texted the captain to let him know she would be late to the precinct tomorrow. 

It took a minute to figure out how to turn the television on, the radio off, and the volume down, but Olivia got the hang of it. She found herself flipping through the menu, so many stations and nothing on. A documentary on hippos seemed better than anything else that was on. She leaned back on the couch cushions and rested. In 15 minutes she would be up checking that Rafael was asleep. After that she would be able to drift off herself.

***


End file.
